Credentials of Fame (Tyga/Roc Royal Story) *Sequel*

Chapter 11: Interviews Are Like Confessions

Janelle’s POV

That’s it. I’m not spending any more time with Mindless Behavior. Why?

1)    They just have too much drama.

2)    I’m too busy with my own family drama.

Well, the song is finished. It’s supposed to drop today via internet, it’ll be posted on Mindless Behavior’s official website, and we all have to mention it on twitter. The boys are excited—well, Ray-Ray and Prodigy are excited, I don’t know about Roc and Prince since I’ve been avoiding them—but I’m not. It’s just hard to be excited about something, anything, when you come home and find your twin brother rocking back and forth on his bed, scratching his arms.

First of all, Junior was too skinny. It was scary. He was just skin and bones!

His lips were thin; he was pale and shaking.

I rushed into his room and dropped my bags on the floor. Mama was sitting across from Junior crying, and Daddy was shaking his head.

“Go to your room, baby.” Mama said when she saw me. Daddy just glanced at me and went back to cursing under his breath.

“What’s going on?” I asked. I wasn’t about to play dumb; I needed to know.

“Nothing. Your mother said to go to your room.” Daddy replied, his head in his hands. A little part of me wanted to get irritated that he was being so insensitive, but I knew he was just stressed.

“Junior, what happened to you? Why do you look like that?” I asked him. He just kept swinging back on forth on his bed, shivering, and holding on to his bony arms. I didn’t want to believe it. I mean, I hadn’t seen him for three days—what else could have happened?

But it was hard to accept.

“Your brother has been taking drugs, Janelle. Cocaine, heroin, weed… and all other things I don’t know about.” Mama blurted out. I didn’t want her to say it. I didn’t want to feel the tears building up in my eyes like I did now. I didn’t want to feel angry at Daddy for not being close enough to his son. I bit my bottom lip to stop crying.

“Where’s Bianca?” I asked, pushing the words through my clenched teeth. Then I remembered that the little tramp was wither her mother. I ran down the stairs, picked up the landline in the living room and dialed the number.

“Where the hell are you?” I asked when she picked up the phone.

“Excuse me? You’re speaking to Blac Chyna. Who is this?”

Damn. This is not who I wanted to speak to at the moment.

“It’s Janelle. Where’s Bianca?” I forced myself to ask. I hated talking to her.

“She’s getting ready for the radio interview with 105.1. Aren’t you supposed to be there too?”

I looked down at my phone on the couch. There was an open text from Prodigy, with the address and the time we had to be at the radio show…which was in 30 minutes.

I hung up on Chyna and went upstairs to get ready. Hopefully, this day wouldn’t get any worse.

                                                                    * * *

My family is black and old-school, so Junior and I got beaten for every bad thing we did. But Junior didn’t get a beating today (not that I expected him to, because that would just be cruel). Instead, he got something worse. When we pulled up in front of Murray Rehabilitation Center, I could tell he knew.

“Please, Mama, please don’t make me stay here. I won’t do drugs no more. I’ll be good. I don’t want to come here.” Junior pleaded. Watching the tears stream down his face made them come into my eyes, too.

“You’re staying here. There’s no doubt about it. You’re going to break this addiction before I have to break it myself. No child of mine is going to be a junkie.” Mama said sternly. Daddy didn’t even acknowledge any of us.

He was being so insensitive.

He helped Mama take Junior’s suitcase out of the trunk of the car, so Junior and I were in the backseat alone.

“Look, I don’t want to sound all emotional in front of Mama and Daddy, so let me just say this quickly. I love you. You’re the closest thing I have in this world, even though I don’t act like it sometimes. I need you; what am I going to do while you’re in here? You have to be good, do what they say, get off these drugs, and they’ll let you come home. I know it’s hard, but you have to listen to me. Just do everything they say. Everything.” I rushed my words.

Junior stared into my eyes and I stared into his, which looked different, less healthy, than before. He pulled me into a tight hug and soon he was out of the car. Then he was in the center. And Daddy drove off.

Next stop, Power 105.1 radio station.

“Hey y’all, I’m here with the Mindless Behavior crew, along with two wonderful girls that are a bit new to the music world and the whole media idea, so we’ll let them introduce themselves.” DJ Clue said into the microphone across from us. He motioned to Bianca.

“Hi guys, this is your girl Bianca. I have a great voice…I think…and I’m just really excited to be here.” She said, giggling.

Too fake.

Then DJ Clue motioned to me.

“Um, hey. I’m Janelle, been singing for as long as I can remember, and I just hope we make it big out here.” I said. I would’ve sounded more enthusiastic, but I just dropped off my drug-addicted twin brother at a rehab center.

“And this is the important thing about Janelle and Bianca: they’re BOTH the daughters of Tyga! Shoutout to him, holding it down with his beautiful kids. Mindless Behavior and the daughters of Tyga are here to put their new song, First Love, out there in the public. How was it working on a song with the girls?” He asked the boys.

They gave a typical answer, and then Princeton referred to us as ‘Lovechild’. Apparently, I was part of a two-girl group, with my enemy half-sister. They even named the group without me. I knew I’d have to talk to Roc about that later.

Here’s how the rest of the interview went:

DJ Clue: So um, Janelle, how busy is your life? I mean, you’re the daughter of a hip-hop mogul, you have a half-sister, you’re part of Lovechild, and you’re working with Mindless Behavior…

Me: Well, my life does get pretty busy. I have to make time to write my lyrics, meet the guys in the studio, and make time for my family.

DJ Clue: I’m sure it gets heavy. But speaking of your family, I’m hearing rumors about your twin brother, Michael Stevenson Jr. What’s up with him?

Me: I’m not sure what you mean…he’s fine.

DJ Clue: My source is saying that your mother dropped him off at Murray Rehabilitation Center, not too far from there. Only drug-addicts go there, Janelle. Is your brother ok?

Me: He had some issues, but he’ll be fine.

DJ Clue: I’d think you would want to come out into the public on a clean slate, and be honest about your life and family.

Me: I’m being completely honest, aren’t I?

DJ Clue: Usually the fans want you to spill all the details.

Me: The details aren’t the fans’ business.

DJ Clue: Ha ha, alright, someone’s feisty. I get it. But look, I’m just trying to let you know what the credentials are.

Me: What credentials?

DJ Clue: The credentials of fame.